What Does Freedom Mean To You

This past week America celebrated its two hundred and thirty seventh birthday as a nation. America, like other countries that have declared themselves independent, prides itself on being a free nation. But what does it really mean to be free? Are we, its citizens, free to do whatever we like? We know the answer to that question, don't we?

Yes, we do enjoy certain freedoms more than some other countries, but these freedoms come with constraints. For example, we enjoy the freedom to assemble, but if this assembly is considered disorderly, we will be stopped. As Christians, we enjoy being free from the law as laid out by Moses in the Old Testament, however, does that mean we are free to sin? This is the question that gets a lot of Christians confused, or gives them excuses to do whatever they like.

Just as we do not have the freedom to break the law as citizens of an earthly kingdom, we do not have the freedom to break the law as citizens of a heavenly kingdom. And in the same way if we break the law of the earthly kingdom we must appear before the judge, the same applies to God's laws. When we appear before the earthly judge, we should have an attorney to speak in our defense, otherwise we may be in big trouble. When we appear before God - the Heavenly Judge - we also need an attorney. His name is Jesus Christ.

The Bible says, "My dear children, I write this to you so that you will not sin. But if anybody does sin, we have one who speaks to the Father in our defense--Jesus Christ, the Righteous One" (1 John 2 : 1). Then he goes on to say, "No  one who is born of God will continue to sin, because God's seed remains in him; he cannot go on sinning, because he has been born of God" (3 : 9). 

Do you want to be free? Do you want to know that if you do sin, you have someone - Jesus Christ - to speak in your defense because He already paid the price for your sin? Then come to Him; ask Him to take complete control of your life and then you will be truly free. God bless.